Mystery substance sprayed by man near Tokyo shopping centre puts 20 in hospital | News World

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A busy mall in Tokyo fell into chaos after a person sprayed an unknown substance, causing 20 people to fall unwell.

Footage from Japan’s Nippon TV showed dozens of emergency responders on the scene.

One responder was filmed in a hazmat suit wiping what seemed to be a stain on a wall on the Ginza Six shopping complex.

A person was spotted spraying ‘unknown substance’ around a bank ATM positioned on the primary floor of the upscale shopping center, Tokyo police said.

Roads across the mall, in Tokyo’s shopping district, were blocked off with fire trucks lined up within the streets.

A police cordon is currently in place as officers investigate (Picture: AP)

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One reporter saw two people on stretchers being placed into an ambulance while hazmat suit-wearing responders went contained in the shopping centre.

One 70-year-old woman who was on the mall told AFP that as she walked near the ATM where the spray was deployed, her throat began ‘stinging’.

She added: ‘By the point I arrived, the commotion had already began, and I believed there might need been a small fire or something.

‘Once I went into the ATM corner, my throat felt scratchy, almost numb.’

Police are currently investigating the incident.

Tokyo police examine the scene after a person allegedly sprayed a substance that caused an odor, in Tokyo, Japan, Monday, May 25, 2026. (AP Photo/Eugene Hoshiko)
The noxious substance was sprayed by an ATM (Picture: AP)

In 2024, 4 people were injured after being sprayed with an ‘unknown substance’ on the University of Greenwich.

Police rushed to the university campus shortly following reports that a person had been ‘attacked’.

The person was treated for head injuries before being rushed to the hospital.

The substance was later found to be non-toxic, but students were nonetheless on edge after the incident.

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